'That's it, that's all of them' (Thoughts On L.A. Noire - No Spoilers)
I have to say that even though I play video games on a regular basis, it's been a while since I've immersed myself in a game like I've done with L.A. Noire. I mean, to the point where I catch myself at work wondering WHO DID IT, and then spending the next two hours in agony, because I just want to go home and finish the case I'm working on.
Because L.A. Noire is a classic who-done-it, detective kind of deal. Set to L.A. in the 40s (hence the title), with lots of delightful little references to classic noir films. Hey, you can even play the game in black and white. Yes, there is a setting for that. No, I haven't tried it yet, but I will replay this entire thing at some point, and you can bet I'll play it in black and white then.
L.A. Noire is a Rockstar game, and it plays like a GTA game, except for the fact that now you have to catch the bad guys, and you get penalty points instead of rewards for hit and runs and random city destruction. It took some getting used to, especially since some of the cars in the game can be a pain to drive.
I do like Rockstar games, but I tend to get bored with them really quickly. I prefer linear stories over free roam worlds, I need people/points of interest to tell me what to do/where to go in order for me to be interested enough to go do it. I need a story for my story based games. So I bought L.A. Noire thinking that it would be just another Rockstar game, and was completely content with the thought that I'd get bored with it, and not ever finish it. Imagine my surprise when I found out that there are only 40 free roam "missions" in total in this game (whereas the main plot stretches over 21 longer cases). And when I say "mission" I mean random encounters that you can choose to do if you want to, that won't affect the main plot at all (except give you exp and move you up in the ranks faster). I was absolutely thrilled to see that the main plot is the main priority of the game (as it should be), you're clearly directed from place to place, yet there are still lots of options to explore, and your actions do matter for the plot.
... but then why did Rockstar throw in a realistically populated map of L.A. that takes 15 minutes (if not more) to drive across? It's a largely empty world, and it feels kind of... off. They better release lots of downloadable content, or make sequels with this same town, otherwise it'll feel like a huge waste.
My game statistics speak volumes for how LARGE this world is, and how little goes on in it. I've played the game for about 25 hours total, a little over 7 full hours of that time has been spent simply DRIVING CARS to where I need to be. I know there is a fast travel option in the game, but where's the fun in that? If you fast travel everywhere you'll miss out on points of interest (landmarks you can discover and get experience points for), not to mention calls over the radio asking for assistance on ongoing street crimes (free roam missions).
Once I got into the game and realised I enjoyed it, I was worried that it didn't have any replay value. It's a detective story, you solve crimes, you put away the bad guy... the main story won't change, so why would you want to play this again? I was halfway through the homicide cases before I found myself wanting to play through the earlier cases again. When you start to realise that the three different plotlines you thought were strictly separate starts blending together, you kind of wish you'd paid closer attention during earlier cases. I'm already looking forward to my first re-play.
One of the main features in this game is the interrogation of witnesses/suspects. The face animations are insanely detailed, to the point where you'll easily recognise the voice actors, because you can tell it's their faces. Took me a while to figure out where I'd seen Carla Gallo before, though. I had to pause the game and look up the character. I couldn't focus since her face seemed so familiar. Disturbing. But the interrogation works really well. Basically you have to guess if the suspect/person of interest is lying to you, or withholding information. You have three options during conversations, True, Doubt, or Lie (if you pick Lie, you have to present evidence to back up your accusation, much like the Hold it!/Objection! option in Phoenix Wright). A little musical clue will tell you if you picked the right conversation option. It took me ages before I could tell the difference between the fanfare for right or wrong option, and I kind of wish I never discovered the difference, because I can't explain the gut wrenching disappointment you feel whenever you pick the wrong option in a conversation. There is no retry. You just have to go on knowing that you could have gotten more information if only..... so... yeah. I restarted one of the earlier cases, because I kept getting every conversation option wrong. Every. Single. One. Extremely frustrating, made me feel like a complete ass.
Musical clues are also utilised to let you know if there are clues nearby when you are investigating a crime scene. You'll hear a little bell and the controller will vibrate. Trust me when I say that you live only to hear the little bell once you get to a new crime scene. I find myself sitting there going "THE NOISE, GIVE ME THE NOISE, I NEED THE NOISE~~~~~" *melts into a pool on the floor*. ... the investigation sequences are lots of fun. Very point-and-click-y, very film noir when you discover clues.
So.. yeah. In summary, L.A. Noire is an old fashioned point-and-click adventure game wrapped in Rockstar games wrapping. It plays like Phoenix Wright mixed with GTA, and the tone and setting feels like watching film noir. You follow leads, and catch bad guys. In some cases you even get to choose who you want to send to jail. These cases mess with my head, because I never know if I made the right decision, and the case end when you pick someone... you are the cop after all, so what you say goes. It's kind of interesting, and also somewhat disturbing. I like that not every case has a straight forward ending. The same can not be said about the free roam mission, though, where pretty much every mission is 'see a bad guy do something bad, chase bad guy, kill bad guy'. Almost always without fail. It's kind of hilarious. You just kill them all, regardless of crime. They shot someone? Kill them! They robbed a bank? Kill them! They took pictures up women's skirts? Kill them!
Anyway, I've got three cases left of the game, and the main plot(s) have taken some serious twists and turns lately, I can't wait to see where this will end up. And if all of this wasn't enough to make you even a little bit interested in the game, I guess I could also mention that John Noble is a voice actor in this game. I nearly died when I finally encountered his character. He's a pretty big deal. He even has billboards all around town;
I'm so glad I got this game. I'll be a little sad when it's all over. Thankfully, it's got replay value, and hopefully I've got plenty of downloadable content to look forward to. ♥
Because L.A. Noire is a classic who-done-it, detective kind of deal. Set to L.A. in the 40s (hence the title), with lots of delightful little references to classic noir films. Hey, you can even play the game in black and white. Yes, there is a setting for that. No, I haven't tried it yet, but I will replay this entire thing at some point, and you can bet I'll play it in black and white then.
L.A. Noire is a Rockstar game, and it plays like a GTA game, except for the fact that now you have to catch the bad guys, and you get penalty points instead of rewards for hit and runs and random city destruction. It took some getting used to, especially since some of the cars in the game can be a pain to drive.
I do like Rockstar games, but I tend to get bored with them really quickly. I prefer linear stories over free roam worlds, I need people/points of interest to tell me what to do/where to go in order for me to be interested enough to go do it. I need a story for my story based games. So I bought L.A. Noire thinking that it would be just another Rockstar game, and was completely content with the thought that I'd get bored with it, and not ever finish it. Imagine my surprise when I found out that there are only 40 free roam "missions" in total in this game (whereas the main plot stretches over 21 longer cases). And when I say "mission" I mean random encounters that you can choose to do if you want to, that won't affect the main plot at all (except give you exp and move you up in the ranks faster). I was absolutely thrilled to see that the main plot is the main priority of the game (as it should be), you're clearly directed from place to place, yet there are still lots of options to explore, and your actions do matter for the plot.
... but then why did Rockstar throw in a realistically populated map of L.A. that takes 15 minutes (if not more) to drive across? It's a largely empty world, and it feels kind of... off. They better release lots of downloadable content, or make sequels with this same town, otherwise it'll feel like a huge waste.
My game statistics speak volumes for how LARGE this world is, and how little goes on in it. I've played the game for about 25 hours total, a little over 7 full hours of that time has been spent simply DRIVING CARS to where I need to be. I know there is a fast travel option in the game, but where's the fun in that? If you fast travel everywhere you'll miss out on points of interest (landmarks you can discover and get experience points for), not to mention calls over the radio asking for assistance on ongoing street crimes (free roam missions).
Once I got into the game and realised I enjoyed it, I was worried that it didn't have any replay value. It's a detective story, you solve crimes, you put away the bad guy... the main story won't change, so why would you want to play this again? I was halfway through the homicide cases before I found myself wanting to play through the earlier cases again. When you start to realise that the three different plotlines you thought were strictly separate starts blending together, you kind of wish you'd paid closer attention during earlier cases. I'm already looking forward to my first re-play.
One of the main features in this game is the interrogation of witnesses/suspects. The face animations are insanely detailed, to the point where you'll easily recognise the voice actors, because you can tell it's their faces. Took me a while to figure out where I'd seen Carla Gallo before, though. I had to pause the game and look up the character. I couldn't focus since her face seemed so familiar. Disturbing. But the interrogation works really well. Basically you have to guess if the suspect/person of interest is lying to you, or withholding information. You have three options during conversations, True, Doubt, or Lie (if you pick Lie, you have to present evidence to back up your accusation, much like the Hold it!/Objection! option in Phoenix Wright). A little musical clue will tell you if you picked the right conversation option. It took me ages before I could tell the difference between the fanfare for right or wrong option, and I kind of wish I never discovered the difference, because I can't explain the gut wrenching disappointment you feel whenever you pick the wrong option in a conversation. There is no retry. You just have to go on knowing that you could have gotten more information if only..... so... yeah. I restarted one of the earlier cases, because I kept getting every conversation option wrong. Every. Single. One. Extremely frustrating, made me feel like a complete ass.
Musical clues are also utilised to let you know if there are clues nearby when you are investigating a crime scene. You'll hear a little bell and the controller will vibrate. Trust me when I say that you live only to hear the little bell once you get to a new crime scene. I find myself sitting there going "THE NOISE, GIVE ME THE NOISE, I NEED THE NOISE~~~~~" *melts into a pool on the floor*. ... the investigation sequences are lots of fun. Very point-and-click-y, very film noir when you discover clues.
So.. yeah. In summary, L.A. Noire is an old fashioned point-and-click adventure game wrapped in Rockstar games wrapping. It plays like Phoenix Wright mixed with GTA, and the tone and setting feels like watching film noir. You follow leads, and catch bad guys. In some cases you even get to choose who you want to send to jail. These cases mess with my head, because I never know if I made the right decision, and the case end when you pick someone... you are the cop after all, so what you say goes. It's kind of interesting, and also somewhat disturbing. I like that not every case has a straight forward ending. The same can not be said about the free roam mission, though, where pretty much every mission is 'see a bad guy do something bad, chase bad guy, kill bad guy'. Almost always without fail. It's kind of hilarious. You just kill them all, regardless of crime. They shot someone? Kill them! They robbed a bank? Kill them! They took pictures up women's skirts? Kill them!
Anyway, I've got three cases left of the game, and the main plot(s) have taken some serious twists and turns lately, I can't wait to see where this will end up. And if all of this wasn't enough to make you even a little bit interested in the game, I guess I could also mention that John Noble is a voice actor in this game. I nearly died when I finally encountered his character. He's a pretty big deal. He even has billboards all around town;
I'm so glad I got this game. I'll be a little sad when it's all over. Thankfully, it's got replay value, and hopefully I've got plenty of downloadable content to look forward to. ♥